‘Islamabad the beautiful’ has not seen its most prominent and important resident for over 50 days now. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif left Pakistan for London on May 22 where, as per several family members, he underwent several heart-grafts; four to be precise. The procedure was performed at London’s Harley Street Clinic, according to PM’s Sharif’s elder son, Hussain.

Although PM Sharif returned to the country on July 9, just after Eidul Fitr, he is staying put in Lahore. The media wing of the Prime Minister’s Office and family sources say the prime minister needs more time to fully recuperate.

In the meantime, he continues to discharge his official duties – as the country’s chief executive – from his mother’s home in Raiwind, Lahore.

Since he is also president of the ruling PML-N, the prime minister, says one of the close aides, also holds party meetings whenever the need arises. The main thrust of these meetings, the aide said, was crafting the government’s response in case opposition parties, particularly the PTI, takes to the streets.

Imran Khan has said more than once that if the government continues to drag its feet over an inquiry into the revelations thrown up by the Panama Papers and refuses a meaningful investigation into the accounts of those who hold offshore companies, he will launch an anti-government movement.

Coming back to the prime minister’s decision to stay in Lahore instead of returning to his official seat, PM Sharif will inevitably have to remain in Islamabad until May 2018, in his capacity as head of the federal government.

Many are wondering exactly what made the prime minister or his advisers – if he still listens to anyone else, that is – were thinking when they decided that he should abstain from the federal capital, where he is needed the most.

While there is no question that he needs his rest following major surgeries, but that could also be accomplished in Islamabad, where his mere presence would mean that he is back in the saddle.

With Indian-occupied Kashmir in turmoil and the country facing serious foreign policy challenges, the fact that PM Sharif – who incidentally holds charge of the foreign affairs portfolio – is still missing from the scene sends negative signals.

For some, the prime minister’s decision to prolong his stay in Lahore is a clear sign of his ‘besieged mentality’, since he is facing multiple challenges in the shape of Panamagate, simmering civil-military tensions and foreign policy quagmires.

Speaking to Dawn, a member of the federal cabinet admitted that already, the PM’s extended stay in London had brought a bad name to the ruling party and that his continued absence from office would only leave a further bad taste.

“Frankly, I have no plausible explanation for why the prime minister has preferred to stay in Lahore after his return from London. This is something only Maryam Nawaz Sharif or the prime minister himself can explain,” the cabinet member said, recalling Maryam’s exclusive role in passing on information about her father’s health during his time in London.

If the PM wanted to be with his mother, she could have joined him in Islamabad for emotional support during his recuperation, the minister said.

A PML-N office-bearer also expressed surprise over his leader’s devil-may-care attitude. “The ruling party has already received a significant amount of bad press for shifting the government to London. “The prime minister could’ve at least landed in Islamabad first and then gone to Lahore after a few days to keep up appearances,” the office-bearer said.

But this was to be expected. Ever since he took charge in June 2013, PM Sharif had invariably spent his weekends in Lahore, at her mother’s place. Every week, he would fly to the provincial capital on Friday evening and return on Monday evening, spending a total of three days in Lahore every week.

But this does not mean the PM is sitting idle; he will be chairing a special cabinet meeting on the Kashmir issue in Lahore’s Governor House today (Friday) and may come to Islamabad early next week. However, according to the PM’s aide, that decision has not yet been finalised.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2016